How to check furniture quality before you buy?

When it comes to buying furniture for your home or workplace, you want it to be ticked off your checklist for at least a decade. You look at it as a long-term investment and something that has durability. Today’s market is booming with so many furniture stores, interior decorator showrooms and online options. And we as buyers have the unforeseeable task of knowing which furniture options are better than others.

Here is a quick guide that will help you know the quality of furniture while buying it.

Quality of wood

The furniture items are generally made of solid wood, hardwood, plywood or veneer which say about the wood quality. It is always best to go with solid hardwood as it contains wood as single piece naturally. Plywood is made of layers of cut wood and is slightly of a lower density than solid wood. You can assess this by looking at the exposed surface of furniture showing the inner raw wood. If at all you want to buy furniture item made of plywood, make sure it has at least 9 layers so that it is durable. You can also go with veneers as it does not wear easily. Veneers can be thick or thin. With thick veneers, there is a chance of peeling away or separating easily. Hence it is better to go with thin ones. Make sure that the piece is not made of sawdust/Timber Composite.

Type of wood

Another thing is the type of wood. Woods are generally termed as hardwood or softwood, depending on the tree from which it is derived. Hardwood comes from trees like Teak, Sheesham, oak, sandalwood, mahogany, maple or walnut, and is generally more durable. Pine is softwood and cannot give longevity. You can ask the salesperson for the type of wood used.

The finishing

Carefully observe the superficial layers of the ply or laminate used, for any scratches or wear. The finishing will tell you everything about the standard of craftsmanship. Touch all the surfaces and edges of the furniture piece to see if they are smooth.

Fabric and cushions

Go for natural fabrics like linen, cotton blend, wool or leather rather than synthetic ones like acrylic or nylon. Linen or cotton blend is well resistant to soiling, wrinkling or fading. Wool is also a good and sturdy choice. They are washable and are good for the long run, Leather is also a tough material but has to be cleaned with leather conditioner or vacuumed. It is slightly high maintenance.

You should give priority to removable cushion covers. Firm cushions are more durable than fluffy ones. Also, go for a cover made of a single fabric entirely rather than those having many stitched parts.

Springs

Firm sofas have typical coiled springs while bouncier ones have zigzag coils. You may choose the sofas according to your liking. But make sure that the springs are good. You can remove the cushion sand push down the coils. It should spring back immediately

Cabinets and drawers

Check the drawers and cabinets. Open the drawers and see whether they glide easily and evenly without any roughness as you do so. Also see to it that each of the doors of cabinets open and close properly, and they do not snap or remain in open position after closing. Check that the hinges are tight, do not have any rough edges and are not rusted.

Legs

For sofas or chairs, the legs should be well fitted as joints and not simply nailed in. the legs should be of heavy wood and jointed. Don’t forget to look under the tables and chairs the type of joints used. Commonly used finger or dovetail joints make the piece tough. Do not go for metal legs or ones with rubber or plastic as they may spoil your floor or carpet and won’t stand the test in time.

The wobble test

You will have to put pressure on various parts of chairs tables or couches to see if it rocks or wobbles. If it does, it has poor balance, fitting or not in a proper plane. Buying a piece which wobbles or rocks is not a smart investment!

Go for handmade designs

Hand-made furnishings are made with expertise and finer skills than machine made furniture. Thus, it is good to buy handmade wooden items

Check for the weight

Heavier furniture always has better quality of wood than lighter, cheaper furniture. For a sofa or table made of quality wood it is difficult for a single person to pick it up. At least two people are required for the job.

Warranty

Last but not so much the least is the warranty. Most of the good quality furniture items come with a warranty of at one to five years. Even though such warrantied furniture is slightly expensive it can go a long way.

With this knowledge at hand, you are ready for your furniture shopping.

When it comes to quality of wood, Anu Furnitures is known to offer the most superior and durable furnishings.

We make home and office décor items with utmost skill and dexterity. It is also made sure that elegance, durability or comfort is not compromised in any way.

About Anufurnitures.com

Anu Furniture is a leading furniture store in Hyderabad. We offer you all kinds of luxury and economical furniture for your home and commercial purpose at the best price. Buy now at our nearest stores or online.